Wanting Later
by LoveTheBoyWithTheBread
Summary: Cato/Clove. Clove's POV, of her and Cato's few moments before the feast, before she goes to her death. The kiss that they never had. Enjoy! UDATE--Clove's very last moments at the feast!
1. Wanting Later

**A/N--I've never written a Cato/Clove fic before, so I hope you all like it :).**

**Disclaimer--NOT MINE! Duh!**

**Enjoy :)!**

* * *

Maybe it has been here all along, and I've never seen it before.

Or maybe it has just come into existence.

Whatever it is, it is something special. I look into his eyes, and I see a burning passion that I have never seen anywhere before.

Cato is determined to win these Games. He always has been, that's why he volunteered. But this determination is different.

"I'll get you out of here." He states matter-of-factly. I don't doubt him for a second.

As we prepare to go to the feast he talks to me in an even tone, never missing a beat.

"Loverboy is probably close to dead. Katniss might not have even found him. The red-haired girl is too much of a chicken to be a risk. I can deal with Thresh, no problem. It could be over tonight, Clove. We could go back. Victors of the 74th Hunger Games. Victors. Both of us. Together."

_And then what happens?_ I want to ask him. _What happens to us?_ I don't ask him. I am scared of the answer. That is what I am scared of. Not that Thresh will crush me. Not that Katniss will shoot me with her deadly arrows. I'm not scared of the little, sly girl or the pathetic loverboy. I am scared of what will happen to Cato and me after we win. He acts like there is something for us. He is different then he was.

Cato quietly paces about our camp. I sit on a stump and watch him, following him with my eyes. He is so much different than back when we trained together. I remember one day...

_"You're hopeless, Clove!" Our trainer yells. He is one of the Victors of old. Our district certainly has enough. And those of us who show promise at a young age get to train with him. Not many of us. Three or four from each age group. We train at different times, in our small groups. I am with Cato, Josephine, and Rickie. We are all 17, and this will be our year in the Games. Our last chance for victory and for honor. Cato is in for sure, he is the only boy, and he shows so much potential. He is a killing machine. I have to work harder, though. I have to beat out both Josephine and Rickie in order to ever have my chance to shine, to volunteer as Tribute of District 2._

_I wipe off my pants, hopping quickly to my feet. "No!" I growl at Cato. We are facing off in hand-to-hand combat. No knives, no weapons, just ourselves. Cato has knocked me to the ground twice already, and all I've gotten in is one solid knee in his groin. At this point, he is looking smug and bored. I lung at him, and he swipes at me with a lazy hand, that of a cat batting away a mouse it is already sick of. But this time I don't fall. I jump on his back and my weight knocks him to the ground, because he wasn't ready for that. My hands are around his head, ready to twist in a way that will surely snap his neck. "Dead." I say, in exhaustion._

_"Good, Clove, nice work." Our trainer praises. The other girls look at me in wonder. Neither of them have been able to take down Cato, and with only a week left before the Reaping, their chances don't look good._

_Cato rubs his neck in discomfort. He bears his teeth at me, and I want to laugh. Yes, I will be Tribute this year, and I will be happy to break Cato's neck when it is down to the two of us._

He is so different now. He isn't thinking only of himself, and a part of him has softened. I can't help but hope that it is because of me, because he loves me. Maybe, maybe he loves me.

"Cato?" I ask quietly, breaking his concentration. He stops pacing, marches over to me, smoothly. Kneels down next to me, his hand on my knee.

"What is it, Clove?" He asks so softly my heart flutters inside my chest.

"What..." I can't say it. "What will happen with us, after we win?" I ask, finally. The words choke out of my mouth, and I sound nothing like me. There is no sneer in my voice whatsoever. I am different, too.

"Well we won't have to train anymore, that's something." He begins, and I am immediately grateful for the image of life without training. Ah, bliss. "And we'll be rich," He starts to paint a picture of a beautiful life. "We'll live in Victor's Village, with all the old geezers and the strong and beautiful people. We can have houses right next to each other. We'll be famous. Everyone in the Capitol will love us. Everyone will want to have you." He pauses, for dramatic effect. " But I won't let them. Because you'll be mine."

He stands up, pulling me with him, pressing me against his chest, and looking at me with smoldering eyes. He bends his head down, his lips are inches from mine. I think I'll explode from anticipation, and then... the sun begins to rise.

Cato looks at the sky for confirmation that we should be leaving. "It's time," he says. "We'll finish this later."

I look at his lips, longingly and he winks at me. Then we head off in different directions, preparing for the feast. I wish it was later.

* * *

**A/N--Sniff, sniff. So sad, there never is a later. Aww, now I'm gonna cry... REVIEW? It might stop my tears!**


	2. No Later

**A/N--Since you guys wanted later, too. Here are Clove's final moments, from her own POV.**

**I hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer--This is NOT mine, I repeat, NOT MINE! Although, I wish it were.**

**Enjoy! :).  
**

* * *

I wait behind a tree, waiting for my moment to strike. I'm not here for the stupid bag, I don't even know what's in it. Not for me, maybe it's something for Cato. I bite my lip, thinking of Cato, thinking of what will happen when we get back home. Once we kill Katniss, then Peeta will die on his own. He is probably half way in the grave, now.

But just in case he's not, just in case he has the strength to come fight, just in case, Cato is hunting for him in the woods. He is hunting for Peeta, or Katniss, if she doesn't do what we thought. He is hunting for Thresh, if he plans a sneak attack, rather than barreling in here like we've decided he would. Hunting for the District 5 girl, if she has the guts to come here at all.

And while Cato is hunting in the woods, I am going to hunt at the Cornucopia. I wait behind a tree. I am still waiting, as the sun starts to gleam off the golden horn. Here it comes. The ground starts to shake, splitting in two. A table rises, garbed in a cloth of snowy white. Our backpack is large and black. The only difference between ours, and Thresh's is the unmistakable 2, distinguishing it from the one with an 11. The girl from five's pack is medium and green. Then there is a tiny orange pack. Really little, marked with a 12, it is for Katniss and Peeta, probably medicine for Lover Boy.

I grip a knife tightly in each hand. I won't risk revealing my location until Katniss or Peeta comes out, that is what Cato and I agreed upon. By the looks of the pack, I doubt Peeta will be showing, so I wait for Katniss. Cato forbid me from attacking Thresh, saying it's not worth the risk, that we would hunt him together, after we took down the rest. I'm not prepared for the small girl from 5 to run out from the Cornucopia, grabbing just her bag, and sprinting into the trees. She's gone before I can react, much too far away for me to throw a knife at her. I grit my teeth, angrily. Neither Cato nor I expected her to have been so clever as to think of that plan. If I would have thought of it, then I could have waited for Katniss to grab the bag before I killed her.

I'm seriously considering abandoning Cato's carefully laid out plan, and chasing after the girl, when Katniss tears through the trees and onto the open plain. I find that I am smiling to myself. She isn't a very smart girl, it seems. I run after her, throw one of my deadly knives. It is just about to sink into her flesh when she whips out her bow and deflects it. She turns slightly, without stopping, and fires an arrow at me. It is aimed more deadly than my knife was, and I don't have the time to avoid it completely. Luckily, I turn enough to keep it out of my chest. The arrow digs into my upper left arm. I have to stop to get the thing out, biting my lip in pain.

It's not too bad, and since it is in my left arm, I will still be able to throw to kill. But pulling it out takes time, and Katniss is still moving to the table. I run after her, as soon as I can, but she's already at the table, positioning the strap of her backpack high on her arm. Her bow is loaded and ready, but her back is to me. I throw the next knife at her, aiming at the back of her head. She'll be down before she knows what's happened. But she turns at the last second, and the knife catches her in the forehead, drawing gushes of blood from the deep slice. It falls down her face and drains into her eye and mouth. I smile grimly.

She trips backwards, but shoots her arrow at me, even though it's a terrible shot. It misses by a ways, and she doesn't have time to reload before I plow into her. She falls flat on her back, I hear the crunch of her shoulders popping under the weight of my knees, and I smell the blood gushing from her head wound.

"Where's your boyfriend, District Twelve? Still hanging on?" I ask, savoring the look of death in Katniss' eyes.

"He's out there now. Hunting Cato," she practically growls at me. Vicious. Then she screams. "Peeta!"

I punch her in the throat. Her screams stop, suddenly, and my head whips around, looking for Lover Boy. I doubt that he's here, but I can't take any chances. But Peeta doesn't come, and I know that he'd be here in a second, not accounting for danger, only trying to save her, if he could be.

I turn my head back to her, grinning. "Liar. He's nearly dead. Cato knows where he cut him. You've probably got him strapped up in some tree while you try to keep his heart going." I'm goading her, trying to get a reaction, it's not really working. "What's in the pretty little backpack? That medicine for Lover Boy? Too bad he'll never get it."

Opening up my jacket, I display my collection of knives. They're beautiful, and I know if nothing else has, this will frighten the fearless Katniss. I take out my favorite. It's blade is curved, and I've been saving it especially for Katniss. "I promised Cato if he let me have you, I'd give the audience a good show," I lie. I didn't promise that to Cato. He just wanted me to kill her, grab the backpack, and get out before someone else came to fight. But he's underestimating my killing ability. I'm invincible.

Katniss struggles underneath me, trying to fight her way away from death. I laugh, because she's stuck. No way out, she's going to die by my hand, and I love it. "Forget it District Twelve. We're going to kill you. Just like we did your pathetic little ally... what was her name? The one who hopped around in the trees? Rue? Well, first Rue, then you, and then I think we'll just let nature take care of Lover Boy. How does that sound?"

I wasn't too excited when I found out Rue had died, or when Cato deduced that Marvel had killed her. I didn't have anything against her, and I had even let her get away once when she was spying on camp. I didn't tell anyone about it, because I figured she wasn't going to do me any harm living a little while longer. But I have a reputation as a vicious killer to keep up for Katniss and the rest of Panem, so I rub it in her face.

"Now, where to start?" I wipe some of the blood out of her eye with my jacket sleeve, because I want her to see it coming. Tilting her head back and forth, I carefully try to decide how exactly to mutilate her. She snaps at my hand, and I grab her hair and force her back to the ground. She's not going to get a piece of me this close to the end. "I think..." I smile at her, speaking in a seductive, glowing voice. "I think we'll start with your mouth." I trace her lips with the blade. She forces her teeth together and glares at me.

She isn't closing her eyes. Good; I want it that way. Her eyes blaze with fury and defiance, and I know I have hit a chord with Rue. I skim the blade over her lips. "Yes, I don't think you'll have much use for your lips anymore. Want to blow Lover Boy one last kiss?" I ask her gratingly. She spits blood in my face. That really pisses me off. "All right then. Let's get started."

I'm ready for a pleasantly gory carving session, lasting about ten minutes, probably. But I barely get a nick in the side of her mouth before I am yanked upward from behind. I scream. At the top of my lungs, I scream like I have never screamed before. Thresh has his arms wrapped around me, lifting me up off the ground. I am terrified, and I wish so badly that I would have listened to Cato and just killed her, rather than foolishly trying to prolong it. He throws me at the ground, towering over me.

"What'd you do to that little girl? You kill her?" He asks, and his voice is low and rumbly. I am so scared, I feel like I'll pass out from terror.

I try and crawl backward, with my legs and arms, I try to get away from Thresh. "No! No, it wasn't me!" I can hear that I'm pleading with him, but that's all I have now.

"You said her name. I heard you. You kill her?" He pauses briefly, then he nearly growls in rage. "You cut her up like you were going to cut up this girl here?"

"No!" I plead. "No, I--" He has a stone in his hand. He is going to beat me with a stone. I'm done for. "Cato! Cato!" I yell it so much louder than I had ever thought possible, because I know that this is it. I will not win the Hunger Games, I will not go back to glory, and riches, and a house in Victor's Village with Cato. I will never get to kiss him. He promised. He promised me later, but I'm not going to get a later. I'll never have a later with Cato.

"Clove!" Cato yells back, but he is too far away. He was probably tracking the little girl who was so much smarter than the rest of us, and he is too far away to come to my aid.

Thresh smashes the rock into my skull. I'm done. But right now, there is still some awareness left inside my head. I can still smell Katniss' blood, feel Thresh's rage. See Cato's face, behind my eyelids. My breathing is labored. _This is it. This is it. _I can practically feel the pain Cato will have when he finds me dead. He will fight even harder now, to avenge my death. He'll go after Thresh, first. Peeta will die without the medicine, after Thresh kills Katniss, and it will come down to the sneaky girl and Cato. I wish I could warn him about how smart she is. But I know he'll win.

_Goodbye, Cato. _I think, and maybe, just maybe, he can hear me somewhere. _I love you. _

Like I've never loved anyone before him. And I wanted later so badly, so, so badly.

I don't get a later. I get death.

* * *

**A/N-- Review? I hope it was up to expectations!**


	3. Then and Now

**A/N--Well... this is the first chapter, only from Cato's POV.**

**Disclaimer--Apparently, I should sleep more. *shrugs* Who needs sleep *involuntary spasm* Hehe.**

**Enjoy :)!  
**

* * *

I'm watching her watch me. It's sort of interesting, the way the moonlight glints in her eyes, her hair. It's sort of beautiful. And she is beautiful, just in a way I've never really seen before. I've always admired her strength, her cunning, her determination. Now I admire her for so many other reasons. I want, so badly _need_ her to come home with me, out of this arena for good. We can make it, I know we can. I have complete faith in my ability--our ability--to get out of here alive. And now it is about more than just fame and glory, it is also about Clove.

Clove, the girl that I was looking forward to killing. The girl that I have actually slapped on many occasions, in and out of the Games. The girl that, upon asking her less than a month ago, would have joyously described the exact way she planned to kill me. The girl who _did _joyously describe it--to me.

Now she is more than that. She is the girl that I need to live. The girl that I need to be me. The girl that I love.

I didn't think I could love, anything other than myself, that is. But I do, because if this isn't love, I don't know what is.

I hadn't meant to. Fall in love, I mean. I just wanted to get in, get out, nobody gets hurt. Well, everyone, except for me. That's what I wanted. But I suppose stranger things than falling in love with a girl you used to hate with a fiery passion that burned with the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns, in an arena where I should have only been thinking of killing said girl, have happened. Just not to me.

"I'll get you out of here," I state with conviction. She is sitting on a stump, looking up at me, hope and trust simply beaming off her face. It does something to me, that I can't name. A joy I've never experienced before Clove. "Lover Boy is probably close to dead. Katniss might not have even found him. The red-haired girl is too much of a chicken to be a risk. I can deal with Thresh, no problem. It could be over tonight, Clove. We could go back. Victors of the 74th Hunger Games. Victors. Both of us. Together."

We've been planning for hours now. As soon as Claudius Temple-dip announced the feast, we've been planning our strategy. Clove's to hide out, waiting for the item, whatever it is, to arrive. She's to take down Katniss, smooth and quick, get whatever we need, and get out of there. I'll be hunting Thresh. And Peeta, if for some reason he is able to move, I doubt it though. I'm so ready for this. Ready to kill them all and be done with it. What a memorable Games this will be for everyone. My parents will be proud, and I can go back to District 2 with Clove by my side, always by my side, from now until forever. The thought makes me feel...cheesy. But it's what I want.

I pace back and forth, formulating strategies, partially, but mostly just thinking of life once we get home. How different it will be compared to life before...

_"You're never going to make it back here, you know. You should probably savor it," Clove sneers at me as we sit in our district's Justice Building, waiting to be taken to the Capitol. My eyes are closed, and I'm imagining what it will be like once I win. I don't gratify her with a response, because we both know that I'll be the winner. Even if she does show some killing talent, she'll never be able to take me down, again. Once, in training, she got me. Just once. She's the only one, ever._

_"Don't ignore me!" She goes from smug to furious in half a second, and her tone is enough to snap my eyes open. Her fists are clenched, she's out of her seat, standing up, glowering at me. There is a fire in her eyes that I haven't noticed before. I wonder if it's been there, or if the Reaping has brought it out in her._

_I keep my calm. Wave her off, lazily. Who cares what she thinks. "You are disturbing my rest."_

_That does it for her. My eyelids are falling closed when she runs towards me, screeching at the top of her lungs. She's such a hot-head. It's actually kind of attractive. Or would be, if she didn't have a knife in her hand._

_"Clove!" I yell with equal fervor. Now that my rage has been kindled, she'll be sorry for threatening me._

_It doesn't matter that I am unarmed, and she has a knife. It doesn't matter that the knife is Clove's most deadly weapon. All I see is the red in my vision, narrowing down to a single point. Her neck, which I will break. Screw the rules, screw the Capitol, screw the Games. This is what killing really is. This is what being the winner really means._

_I jump, wait for her to come closer, and lunge. She lunges, too, and we are about to collide when a peacekeeper jumps between us._

_"HEY!" He yells, frantically. "Cut it out, that's against the rules." He's gasping for breath, holding his hand to his side, blood pouring over his fingers. I realize that Clove has hit him with her knife, and the fact that, had she had her way, that would be my blood bubbling up dangerously around my fingers, finally hits home._

_"BITCH!" I yell in a rage far more powerful than I was feeling earlier. Peacekeepers have removed the weapon from her fingers, removed the injured peacekeeper from the room, and are holding Clove back by her arms. She is kicking and screaming and biting furiously, but there are six great big guys on her, and she really can't hold her own against that. _

_I walk up to her, seemingly calm, but completely seething on the inside. Insane. My hand cracks across her cheek, which becomes instantly red. She bears her teeth at me, screaming wordlessly, too overcome with rage to be coherent._

_"I'll remember that in the Games," I whisper, then return to my nap._

"Cato?" Clove whispers, pulling me back to the present. That time seems a million miles away, a million Catos away, actually. I'm so different now, and so is she. It's not that either of us have gone soft, just that we have someone to be gentle for, now. I walk over to her, kneeling down and placing a hand on her knee. It feels so right, to be with her like this.

"What is it, Clove?" I put all the tenderness I can manage into those words, trying to make her see the exact extent of my feelings for her, without actually having to come right out and say them.

"What..." She begins, but then her face goes ashen, scared. She is holding her breath, and all I can do is wait for her to finish. "What will happen with us, after we win?"

Her thoughts have been echoing mine, and I start to voice the visions that have been swirling around in my head for the last half an hour. "Well we won't have to train anymore, that's something. And we'll be rich. We'll live in Victor's Village, with all the old geezers and the strong and beautiful people. We can have houses right next to each other. We'll be famous. Everyone in the Capitol will love us. Everyone will want to have you." I pause here, thinking of the exact right way of wording this, so I won't sound too cheesy, but still let her know what I want. " But I won't let them. Because you'll be mine."

I stand up, grabbing Clove by her hands and pulling her with me as I make my way to my feet. I press her against my chest, holding her there, staring at her, staring into the depths of her soul. At least that is what it feels like. I bend my face down to hers, my lips slowly making their way to where hers rest, slightly open. I am ready for this kiss that I have already waited much too long for. So ready.

But the sun begins to rise, and I know that it is time for us to head out. Getting back home safely is a higher priority than kissing right now. Besides, we will have plenty of time for that once we win. "It's time," I tell her. "We'll finish this later." Later, when we are back in District 2, or the Capitol, and we could have the rest of our lives for later.

As she starts to walk away, she turns back to stare at me. Her eyes fill with longing, and I wink at her. She smiles, then disappears in the opposite direction than where I am headed.

I shake off the feeling of the past few minutes.

It's time to hunt me some Thresh.

* * *

**A/N--Yayy?**

**Took me long enough, JEEZE! Hehe. REVIEW!  
**


	4. Gone

**A/N--Okay... well, here it is. The final chapter of Wanting Later. :D. Okay, flip that. D: This is sad.**

**Disclaimer--Don't suffer from Istinkitis, really. :)**

**Enjoy :)!  
**

* * *

I smack at a bug that has landed on my arm. What a crappy day. First, I miss my moment with Clove, and now I've missed my moment to kill. Hunting Thresh isn't as easy as I thought it would be. I'm more or less sitting behind a tree, just waiting for someone to walk by. I start to move, now. There is no point in just sitting here. It's not like Thresh or Lover Boy, or whoever, will just happen to walk by my hiding spot. Why am I hiding again? I could easily take down either one of them. Especially Lover Boy, though he's probably near death even now. I laugh out loud. This is great. I can't wait to get out of here with Clove.

I move to the right, then the left. I make a zigzag pattern, for no particular reason. I'm straying farther and farther from the spot that Clove and I were supposed to meet up at, but I don't think the feast has begun yet anyway. This is a bunch of--

There's a disturbance in the ground. I feel it shaking, and again, I laugh out loud. The feast has begun, my friends, the feast has begun. "Come and get me," I pressure whoever is within earshot. No one, probably. But then I see it: a streak of red, flying through the forest. It's that little girl from District 5, I'm sure of it. I pursue, completely forgetting about my Thresh-hunting plans. This will be fun, even if it is not a challenge.

She's quiet, and hard to follow, so I guess it is a little bit of a challenge. I don't try for stealth, but barrel my way through the thick foliage, muttering to myself. Okay, so maybe I sound a little bit crazy, but what are you going to do? I've almost caught the girl, I'm so close to reaching her, then I stop. Burying my heels into the ground and kicking up dust. Clove. Thresh. This girl. Oh, no. If I'm not out hunting Thresh, keeping her away from Clove, then where is he. He must be at the Cornucopia. With Clove.

Oh, no. I let loose a frustrated snarl and start running back towards the golden horn. I can't believe how far away I've gotten. I hope that Thresh isn't anywhere near Clove. Or that Clove has at least already disposed of Katniss, and has her hands free to fight him. Oh, no.

That's when I hear it. "CATO! CATO!" The scream is blood-curdling. Everything I wish I would never have to hear, scraping its way morbidly across my eardrums. That's Clove, yelling for me. I run as fast as I can, but I'm still so far away. So, so far away from her.

I need to make it back to her. I run faster than I've ever run before. "Clove!" I yell back to her, hoping she can hear me. I must be close enough now for her to hear me. Oh, please, please. I beg silently to I don't know who. "I'm coming, Clove," I whisper, out of breath from running so hard.

I'm close now. I can feel it. Then I feel something else. I'm not sure what it is, something terrible though. A cold finger of dread drags its way across my sweaty spine. Clove, my Clove. She's gone. Oh, no she can't be gone! I can feel it, I can feel the loss penetrating through my entire being. Why couldn't I have just kissed her? Why couldn't I have done...something. I should have stayed with her.

I find that I could run faster, because my feet are simply flying, now. I'm moving so much faster, if I would have always moved this fast, maybe I would have reached her before...before. I can't think it. She can't be gone.

I burst through the clearing. I see Thresh run off into the woods. Katniss is not dead, lying on the ground, but Clove is. Oh, God, no! She can't be, just _can't _be gone. She's not gone. I know she's not gone, because I haven't heard the--

BOOM!

The canon blast shakes me to the very core. Something in me is changing again, becoming a different Cato, a broken Cato. Oh, God, don't let her be dead. I can't take it if she's dead.

I run to her, my mind cataloging the fact that everything is cleared off the table, all the 'items' are gone. Then I remember that Thresh had two backpacks when he ran off. One of them is ours. I'll get it back. Clove and I will get it back.

I'm standing above her. Sobs and screams are wrenched from my throat. Yes, you heard right. I, the great Cato, am _sobbing._ I can't stand this. I bend down, try to pick up a heartbeat, I can't. My hands go numb. Oh, God, all of me goes numb. I can't handle this. There's no heartbeat. No flow of breath escaping from her nostrils or slightly-opened lips. "CLOVE!" I yell, shoving my mouth against hers--finally getting that kiss--as I attempt to restart the flow of oxygen into her lungs. She's gone.

Oh, no, no, no! She can't be gone. I collapse on her lifeless body. "Clove," I cry. The only one who's ever touched my heart.

She's gone. I can't...she's gone.

What am I going to do without her?

Oh, sure, I'll kill Thresh, and Lover Boy, and Katniss, and that stupid girl who caused all this. It's her fault. All of their faults.

But right now, I can't deal with this. "Clove," I whisper, brushing my lips against her dead forehead.

_Clove.

* * *

_**A/N-man that was sad! Grr. **

**But alas! The story continues. My fic-in-the-making, 'Pleading For Insanity' follows Cato from here until his death! More information on that on my profile. Will you read it?**

**Review!  
**


End file.
